Fast Facts About the Movie W.

Oliver Stone’s Presidential Biopic on Bush Based on Research

Oct 14, 2008

The director, crew, and actors involved with the new George W. Bush biopic performed extensive research to get the facts right.

In director Oliver Stone’s biopic W. about George W. Bush, he presents various sides of the 43rd U.S. President, attempting to balance the strengths and weaknesses of this highly controversial subject. Josh Brolin (No Country for Old Men) stars as George W. Bush and Elizabeth Banks (Scrubs) portrays First Lady Laura Bush.

W. takes audiences through Bush’s eventful life story, including the origins of his faith, his romance with Laura, his election campaign, early days in office, and critical days before deciding to invade Iraq. The film is divided into three distinct parts: Bush as young and rebellious under age 40; his conversion to Evangelicalism and subsequent lifestyle changes; his early years as president from October 2001 through March 2003.

Stone and screenwriter Stanley Weiser researched the film by reading every known book available on George W. Bush, including State of Denial by Bob Woodward, State of War by James Risen, The One Percent Doctrine by Ron Suskind, Oil, Power and Empire by Larry Everest, and Hubris by David Corn and Michael Isikoff.

In the production notes, Stone said he chose Josh Brolin for the role of George W. Bush because of some interesting parallels between the two men. “Josh, as the son of a Hollywood star, has had quite a volatile life, and shared no doubt many of the crises George W. Bush found himself up against. He was actually 40 years old when we shot the movie – right where Bush was at the time of his turnaround. Josh grew up with a strong father in the limelight, as did Bush; and coming from California ranch country, Josh evoked for me the rural aspect of small-town America that Bush cultivated in Crawford, Texas.”

W. was shot in Shreveport, Louisiana, for nine weeks in spring 2008 using locations and soundstages. Production designer Derek Hill had ten weeks in pre-production to transform the Shreveport area into various locales including Yale, the White House, and the Bush family compound in Crawford, Texas. To help make sets look more authentic, Hill searched web sites, books, photographs, and documentaries, in addition to taking his own aerial shots.

Stone also directed another presidential biopic, Nixon (1995), a drama starring Anthony Hopkins as Richard M. Nixon, which received four Academy Award nominations.

Brolin originally rejected the part of George W. Bush because he thought that he had nothing in common with the role, but later changed his mind after his son read the script and said that he had to do it.

In preparing for the role of Laura Bush, Elizabeth Banks read several books and watched many of Laura Bush’s public appearances to get a sense of her inflection, personal style, and appearance. Banks said that from all accounts, the Bushs remain very much in love with each other. This love and support factored heavily into her portrayal of the First Lady.

Additional cast members include: James Cromwell as George Bush, Sr.; Ellen Burstyn as Barbara Bush; Toby Jones as Karl Rove, Bush’s longtime advisor; Thandie Newton as Condoleezza Rice, his National Security Advisor; Scott Glenn as Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld; Rob Corddry as Press Secretary Ari Fleischer; Jeffrey Wright as Secretary of State Colin Powell; Richard Dreyfuss as Vice President Dick Cheney; Bruce McGill as George Tenet, the Director of the CIA; and Dennis Boutsikaris as Paul Wolfowitz, Deputy Secretary of Defense.

The copyright of the article Fast Facts About the Movie W. in Biopic Dramas is owned by Leslie C. Halpern. Permission to republish Fast Facts About the Movie W. in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.